Category: AFLW

The AFL has shown a lack of imagination when it comes to promoting women’s gameThe AFL has underestimated the appeal of the AFLW competition if it goes ahead with its preference of Ikon Park as a grand final venue on Saturday March 24. On Tuesday, it w…

The Pride game felt more like Mardi Gras, while extreme weather marred other matchesLady Gaga’s Born This Way blares through speakers as a drag queen puffs her chest and pouts at passers-by. Rainbows adorn makeshift stalls as butch dykes hold hands, pa…

Optus Stadium crowd provided a much-needed tonic to a week dominated by negativityAfter a crushing week of off-field criticism, the AFLW can count itself victorious after fans showed their support for the code in droves, a record 41,975 turning out at …

Crowd exceeded previous record of 41,000 for exhibition game in 1929Fremantle, Western Bulldogs, Melbourne and Carlton win in round twoA record crowd of 41,975 watched Fremantle beat Collingwood by 13 points in a fiery AFLW clash at Perth’s Optus Stadi…

No longer the AFL’s ‘dirty little secret’, AFLW’s embrace of diversity is there for all to seeInspire. Tuesday’s official launch of the second season of AFLW ran with the theme of inspiration – complete with the club captains bringing along someone who…

New faces, players to watch, squad analysis and predictions – a team-by-team guide AFLW is back for its second season, beginning on Friday night with a repeat of last year’s packed-out season opener between traditional rivals Carlton and Collingwood at…

After the inaugural season broke down barriers, the goal-kicking star envisages further advancement in the game this year‘This moment is for you’: how women’s sport rocked 2017In the lead-up to the inaugural AFLW draft, Sarah Perkins sat third on Victo…

It has been a rollercoaster year across the codes but women’s sport has gone from strength to strength‘This moment is for you’: how women’s sport rocked 2017Australian sports quiz of the year 2017In the 43rd minute of the Matildas’ 30 July match agains…

The Adelaide Crows broke the dam wall and the Matildas had a year of unrivalled highlights but pay disparity remains• Sam Kerr: ‘Everyone wants to jump on board and be a Matildas fan’With three seconds remaining on the clock and Brisbane trailing by a …

Increase reflects hours players put in over course of seasonMinimum wage of senior players lifted from $8,500 to $10,500AFLW players will be collectively paid $500,000 more next year under a new deal designed to more accurately reflect the hours they p…

The inspirational advocate for women’s footy is relentless when she dedicates herself to a causeThere were many magical moments in season one of AFLW. But there was one in particular that won’t soon be forgotten. The setting was the Whitten Oval, spiri…

North Melbourne and Geelong to join competition in 2019Richmond, West Coast, St Kilda and Gold Coast to follow 12 months laterThe AFLW will expand to 14 teams for the 2020 season, with North Melbourne and Geelong to lead the charge in 2019. Richmond, W…

Footy has a special capacity to raise political issues in a way that is amenable to changing community attitudes, as demonstrated in Hamilton at the weekend

By his own admission, Lachlan Beaton was the kind of footballer who participated in the macho culture that has stereotypically been attributed to men’s AFL. Playing (and later coaching) for the University of Melbourne’s Uni Blacks, he worked hard to be “one of the boys”, and admits to using homophobic slurs on the field to try and assert his own masculinity.

The AFL will expand its women’s competition in 2019, inviting all 10 clubs that are currently not licensed to make bids. A highly-successful maiden AFLW season this year prompted the league’s executive and commission to mull the merits of expansion in 2018.

Geelong and St Kilda were among the clubs to express an interest in fielding women’s teams next year, having missed out on a licence in the maiden season that featured eight sides.

Adelaide’s AFLW grand final triumph capped an inaugural women’s football season that was all about recognition, reconnection and inclusion

If there’s one thing Saturday’s AFLW grand final between the Adelaide Crows and the Brisbane Lions showed us it’s that no one can question the passion and commitment these elite athletes bring to the game. Or the entertainment value. More than 15,000 people attended what turned out to be a thriller, equaling the average crowd at Metricon for men’s AFL matches. It also delivered a ratings bonanza for Foxtel and Channel 7, who, incredibly, were given the broadcast rights for free.

The game itself was not atypical of grand finals. The skills were a little shaky as players were affected by nerves, but the intensity on the ground was riveting. Olympian Erin Phillips was clearly best on ground with 28 possessions and two goals, dominating for much of the game, while the stars Brisbane have come to rely on were well held. Adelaide’s inaccuracy in front of goal allowed Brisbane to stage an impressive comeback in the last quarter but the Crows held on to win by one straight kick.

Despite the success of the AFLW, the AFL’s present financial commitment to women’s football is trifling in relation to its overall resources

For all that the inaugural AFLW season has achieved in boosting the profile of women’s football over these last two months, there remains a legitimate question pertinent to the future development of the women’s game. Is the AFL primarily concerned with promoting women’s football, or is women’s football principally a useful way of promoting the AFL?

The two notions, of course, are hardly exclusive. The exponential increase in media coverage will have undoubted flow on effects on participation, and the future profile of the women’s game. And the AFLW has already proved a useful vehicle for launching the AFL into a social demographic previously resistant to the corporate boys’ club aspects of its brand.

Metricon Stadium to host inaugural title decider instead of GabbaAdele concert had left playing surface damaged earlier this monthThe AFLW grand final between Brisbane and Adelaide will be played at Metricon Stadium on the Gold Coast after the Gabba pi…

Adelaide will play the Brisbane Lions in the inaugural AFL Women’s grand final next week after defeating Collingwood by 24 points in hot conditions at Olympic Park on Sunday. The Crows’ grand final hopes were looking grim when they were held scoreless in the third quarter as their 13-point half-time lead turned into a seven-point deficit at three-quarter-time.

Adelaide’s hearts were in their mouths when Collingwood’s Jess Cameron lined up for goal early in the final quarter. But instead of giving the Pies a 13-point lead, she missed a sitter and the Crows grabbed their second life with both hands as they piled on the last five goals of the game to run out 10.10 (70) to 7.4 (46) winners.

Adelaide will play the Brisbane Lions in the inaugural AFL Women’s grand final next week after defeating Collingwood by 24 points in hot conditions at Olympic Park on Sunday. The Crows’ grand final hopes were looking grim when they were held scoreless in the third quarter as their 13-point half-time lead turned into a seven-point deficit at three-quarter-time.

Adelaide’s hearts were in their mouths when Collingwood’s Jess Cameron lined up for goal early in the final quarter. But instead of giving the Pies a 13-point lead, she missed a sitter and the Crows grabbed their second life with both hands as they piled on the last five goals of the game to run out 10.10 (70) to 7.4 (46) winners.

Blues kick first three goals of final quarter to pull away in front of 7,884 fans

Carlton scored a stirring, come-from-behind win over Greater Western Sydney to stay undefeated in the AFL Women’s competition. With scores tied up at three-quarter time, the Blues kicked the first three goals of the last term to seal the 7.5 (47) to 5.4 (34) win at Princes Park on Saturday.

There was no repeat of the chaotic scenes of last week’s season-opener when hundreds of fans were locked out of the packed ground, but league officials were still pleased with the healthy turn out of 7,884 fans.